

COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT 














The Mormon Bible 


A FABRICATION 

AND 

A STUPENDOUS FRAUD 


ITS CONDEMNATION OF POLYGAMY 

/ 

BY ENOS T. HALL 


COLUMBUS, O. 
Fred J. Heer, Printer 



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Copyright 1899, by Enos T. Hall 


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EXPLANATORY 


literary friend of the writer, hav¬ 
ing read this booklet in manu¬ 
script, expressed surprise upon 
learning that “The Book of Mor¬ 
mon” embraces more than a single 
book — he having been misled by 
the title as he had seen and heard 
it quoted, and never having seen 
a copy of the book; and therefore 
he suggested the preparation of an 
explanatory statement, for the information of 
readers. 

The title is as quoted above, though the writer 
refers to the book as “The Mormon Bible,” be¬ 
cause it seems appropriate, and not likely to mis¬ 
lead. The book is really a collection of fifteen 
books, with the following names, and in the fol¬ 
lowing order: The First Book of Nephi; the 
Second Book of Nephi; the Book of Jacob; the 
Book of Enos; the Book of Jarom; the Book 
of Omni; the Words of Mormon (one chapter 
only, and containing only eighteen verses) ; the 
Book of Mosiah; the Book of Alma; the Book 
of Helaman; the Third Book of Nephi; the 
Fourth Book of Nephi; the Book of Mormon; 
the Book of Ether; and the Book of Moroni. 

The volume in possession of the writer con¬ 
sists of six hundred and twenty-three ( 623 ) 






4 


EXPLANATORY 


pages, closely printed, and in comparatively small 
type, of which the “Words of Mormon” and the 
“Book of Mormon” combined occupy only twen¬ 
ty-four and one-half (24J) pages. The number 
of words in the book, estimated in the usual way, 
and not counting the foot-notes, is 336,420. 

There does not appear to be any logical or 
pertinent reason for having given the combined 
fifteen books the same title as that of one of the 
combination — the Book of Mormon. The ‘first 
verse of the first chapter of Mormon’s book reads 
as follows: “And now I, Mormon, make a record 
of the things which l.have both seen and heard, 
and call it the Book of Mormonbut this is his 
own record only. 

It seems proper to add that not the slightest 
irreverence is intended by the numerous refer¬ 
ences, in the following pages, to the name of the 
Lord. These seem unavoidable because of the 
large number of quotations necessarily used in 
order to convey even a slight impression of the 
presumptuous character of the book under con¬ 
sideration, as the whole fabrication is assumed 
to be upon the Lord’s authority and direction; 
and the assumption is a matter of frequent and 
constant repetition. 


THE MORMON BIBLE 

OR 

“THE BOOK OF MORMON 99 

T seems to the writer that the people of 
this country should be fairly well 
informed as to what Mormonism is, 
and how it originated. That it is a 
delusion, and founded in fraud, will 
become apparent to any person who 
will enter upon an investigation of 
the matter; but though people may 
and do so affirm, few indeed are 
prepared to offer proof of the fact. 
The purpose in issuing this little 
book is to show, not only through 
testimony adduced soon after the 
Book of Mormon appeared, that the 
book is a sacrilegious fabrication, but also to 
demonstrate that its fraudulent character is 
plainly exhibited through its own contents. 

Some time ago an Elder of the Mormon 
Church (Latter-Day Saints) sent to the writer, 
through the mail, a copy of the Book of Mormon. 
The proposition to send it, as a matter of refer¬ 
ence, arose through a conversation between us 
concerning the ruins of prehistoric cities in the 
region of Central America, and the assertion by 
the Elder that the only explanation of the origin 



6 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


and destruction of those cities is found in that 
book. In searching for the explanation referred 
to so much trash was encountered that the at¬ 
tempt to read the work systematically was aban¬ 
doned for a time, because of its wearisomeness; 
but having finally found a fair starting point, the 
search was continued by tracing cross-references, 
which, by the way, are not only very numerous, 
but so arranged as to render the tracing both 
tedious and perplexing. However, in the course 
of perusal many gross errors and preposterous 
statements were found and noted; and finally the 
notes were so arranged as to afford a view such 
as led to a careful examination, the result of 
which is given in the following pages. 

According to this remarkable book there were 
three expeditions to the “Promised Land” — this 
land including both North and South America, 
according to foot-notes designating where land¬ 
ings are supposed to have been made. The first 
expedition started at the time the building of the 
Tower of Babel was attempted, which', according 
to accepted Scriptural chronology, was 2,247 B. 
C., or about one hundred years after the Deluge; 
the second departed from Jerusalem in the first 
year of the reign of Zedekiah, King of Judah, 
which, by the chronology mentioned, was the 
year 597 B. C., though Mormon chronology 
makes it 600 B. C.; and the third left Jerusalem 
at the time Zedekiah was carried away captive to 
Babylon, which was the year 586 B. C., or, as 
stated in a foot-note, “eleven years after Lehi 
left Jerusalem.” The first and second expedi¬ 
tions brought plates containing records; but the 


THE BOOK OF MORMON 


7 


third did not bring records, and comparatively 
little is said about the people and their descend¬ 
ants. The first expedition will be designated 
The Jared Expedition; the second The Lehi Ex¬ 
pedition; and the last The Third Expedition; 
but as the accounts of the second and third pre¬ 
cede the account of the first — the latter being 
given near the close of the book — the same or¬ 
der will be observed in this review, for to treat 
them otherwise would lead to confusion, because 
of the fact that the descendants of the people 
who came first were all destroyed before their 
records were discovered by the descendants of 
those who came later. 

THE LEHI EXPEDITION. 

The First and Second Books of Nephi give 
the account of the departure of Lehi, the father 
of Nephi, and his family, and a few others, from 
Jerusalem, their arrival at the promised land, etc. 
Nephi was the fourth son of Lehi. The elder 
sons were Laman, Lemuel, and Sam; and there 
were two younger — Jacob and Joseph — who 
were born while the people were in the wilder¬ 
ness. They journeyed in the wilderness eight 
years before they reached the sea and were di¬ 
rected by the Lord to build a ship to carry them 
to the promised land; but they had seasons of 
rest, and the journeying was not constant. The 
Lord chose Nephi to be the ruler, whereupon 
Laman and Lemuel became jealous; and believ¬ 
ing that the claim of their father and Nephi that 
they were led by the Lord was simply pretense, 


8 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


they became rebellious, and proposed to slay 
them; but the Lord spake unto them, and chas¬ 
tened them, and they turned from their anger for 
a time. Sam, on the contrary, was satisfied, and 
supported Nephi faithfully. Nephi was com¬ 
manded by the Lord to build a ship, and did so, 
though “not after the manner learned by men,” 
but “as the Lord had shown unto himand the 
work was “exceeding fine.” Then seeds and 
provisions were stowed in the ship, and the peo¬ 
ple went on board and “put forth into the sea,” 
and “were driven forth before the wind toward 
the promised land.” After a time Laman and 
Lemuel bound Nephi with cords; but then the 
tempest became “exceeding sore,” and “the com¬ 
pass, which had been prepared of the Lord, did 
cease to work,” and Laman and Lemuel “began 
to see that the judgments of God were upon 
them,” and released Nephi, who took the com¬ 
pass,* which worked as he desired, and guided 

* This peculiar and remarkable compass is first 
mentioned and described in the First Book of Nephi. 
It was found by Lehi at the door of his tent, the 
morning - he began his journey into the wilderness, 
after leaving Jerusalem. It was “a round ball, of 
curious workmanship, and it was of fine brass; and 
within the ball were two spindles, and the one pointed 
the way whither they should gO' into the wilderness.” 
They “did follow the directions of the ball,” which led 
them “in the more fertile parts of the wilderness.” 
There was writing upon the ball, which the Lord 
commanded them to look upon. The spindles (men¬ 
tioned elsewhere as “pointers”) worked “according to 
the faith, and diligence, and heed” which were given 
unto them; and on these also there was writing, 
“which was changed from time to time, according 
to the faith and diligence given unto them.” In the 



THE BOOK OF MORMON 


9 


the ship; and he prayed unto the Lord, and the 
storm ceased. 

After the emigrants “had sailed for the space 
of many days” they arrived at the promised land. 
The place of landing, according to a foot-note, is 
“believed to be on the coast of Chili, South 
America.” They then began to till the earth, and 
to plant the seeds they had brought, which did 
“grow exceedingly,” and they “were blessed in 
•abundance.” The last verse of ch. 18, i. Nephi, 
reads as follows: “And it came to pass that we 
did find upon the land of promise, as we jour¬ 
neyed in the wilderness, that there were beasts in 
the forests of every kind, both the cow and the 
ox, and the ass and the horse, and the goat and 
the wild goat, and all manner of wild animals, 
which were for the use of men. And we did find 
all manner of ore, both of gold, and of silver, and 
of copper.” Readers will please bear in mind 
what is said here about animals, because of what 
is stated concerning them further along. 

In course of time Lehi, the father, died; and 
then the anger and rebelliousness of Laman and 
Lemuel increased, because Nephi, being a 
younger brother, ruled over them, and they pro¬ 
posed to slay him. Nephi was warned by the 
Lord, and directed to depart from them and flee 
into the wilderness, which he did; and he took 
with him his family, his brother Sam and his 
family, Jacob and Joseph (the younger brothers), 

Book of Alma is the statement that it was called 
“Liahona” by the fathers, “which is, being inter¬ 
preted, a compass; and the Lord prepared it.” There 
is more concerning it in the same chapter. 



10 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


his sisters, Zoram and his family, and others. 
They journeyed in the wilderness for the space 
of many days, when they pitched their tents. The 
place was called Nephi, and the people were called 
Nephites; and they prospered exceedingly. This 
was thirty years from the time the expedition left 
Jerusalem — eight of which, it will be remem¬ 
bered, were spent in the wilderness, before they 
sailed. The people that were left behind by 
Nephi became followers of Laman, the eldest 
brother, and were thereafter known as Lamcm- 
ites; and “the Lord God did cause a skin of 
blackness to come upon them,” because of their 
iniquities — the color being referred to elsewhere 
as “dark,” instead of black. Ever after there 
was enmity between them and the Nephites, and 
disastrous wars between them were common. 
Further along we shall find more about the 
Lamanites. 


THE THIRD EXPEDITION. 

As has already been stated, the people of this 
expedition did not bring records. According to 
the account of them, which is in the Book of 
Omni, their descendants were discovered in the 
land of Zarahemla by Mosiah, King of the 
Nephites, who was warned by the Lord that he 
should flee out of the land of Nephi,* with as 


*An explanatory foot-note reads as follows: “The 
land of Nephi is supposed to have been in or near 
Ecuador, South America. The land of Zarahemla is 
supposed to have been north of the head-waters of 
the river Magdalena, its northern boundary being a 
few days’ journey south of the Isthmus.” 



THE BOOK OF MORMON 


11 


many of his people as would hearken unto the 
warning. They were led by the power of the 
Lord through the wilderness until they came to 
that land. The people they found were called 
“the people of Zarahemla.” At the time Mosiah 
discovered -them they were very numerous, 
though they had had many wars and serious con¬ 
tentions. They had dwelt in this land ever since 
they had been brought to it from Jerusalem by 
the hand of the Lord. Their language had be¬ 
come corrupted, and Mosiah and his people could 
not understand them; but Mosiah caused that 
they be taught in his language; and though they 
had denied the existence of their Creator, “there 
was great rejoicing among them because the Lord 
had sent the people of Mosiah among them, with 
the plates of brass which contained the record 
of the Jews.” The name of their king was Zara¬ 
hemla, and “he gave a genealogy of his fathers, 
according to his memory.” “And it came to pass 
that the people of Zarahemla and of Mosiah did 
unite together, and Mosiah was appointed to be 
their king.” There is nothing more to be said 
concerning the people of this expedition — the 
time of their departure from Jerusalem having 
already been stated. 

THE JARED EXPEDITION. 

The Book of Ether gives an account of this 
expedition to the promised land. This consisted 
of “Jared and his brother and their families, with 
some others and their families, from the great 
Tower, at the time the Lord confounded the lan- 


12 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


guage of the people, and sware in his wrath that 
they should be scattered upon all the face of the 
earth.” “The brother of Jared being a large and 
mighty man, and being a man highly favored of 
the Lord,” Jared said unto him “Cry unto the 
Lord, that he will not confound us that we may 
not understand our words.” This Jared’s brother 
did, and the Lord had compassion upon them. 
Jared then made a request of his brother to inter¬ 
cede in like manner in behalf of their friends, 
which he did, and the Lord had compassion upon 
them and their families, and their language was 
not confounded. And then, upon request of 
Jared, his brother cried again unto the Lord, in¬ 
quiring as to where they should go if driven out 
of the land. “And it came to pass that the Lord 
did hear the brother of Jared, and had compassion 
upon him, and said unto him Go to and gather 
together thy flocks, both male and female, of 
every kind, and also the seed of the earth of 
every kind, and thy families,* and also Jared, thy 
brother, and his family, and also thy friends and 
their families, and the friends of Jared and their 
families. And when thou hast done this thou 
shalt go at the head of them down into the val¬ 
ley, which is northward, and there will I meet 
thee, and I will go before thee into a land which 
is choice above all the land of the earth.”f Then 

*A foot-note referring to this clause reads as fol- 
lbws: “From this verse it is seen that the brother 
of Jared had a plurality of families.” 

t A foot-note reference from this quotation states 
that “the Lord brought them upon the western coast 
of North America.” Another, more specific, on 
another page, says “on the western coast, and prob¬ 
ably south of the Gulf of California, and north of the 
land of Desolation, which was north of the Isthmus.” 



THE BOOK OF MORMON 


13 


follow other promises and directions; and they 
journeyed through the wilderness “to that great 
sea which divideth the lands,” where they dwelt 
four years, when they were directed to build 
barges according to the instructions of the Lord, 
which they proceeded to do. The barges “were 
small, and they were light upon the water, even 
like unto the lightness of a fowl upon the water 
and they “were exceeding tight, even that they 
would hold water like unto a dish, and the bottom 
thereof was tight like unto a dish, and the ends 
thereof were peaked, and the top thereof was 
tight like unto a dish, and the length thereof was 
the length of a tree, and the door thereof (when 
it was shut) was tight like unto a dish.” 

There were eight of these barges.. But they 
were so tight that it was observed that there 
could be neither light nor fresh air within, and 
the Lord was again appealed to; and the Lord 
directed that a hole be made in both the top and 
the bottom of each, which were to be “unstopped” 
to admit air, but stopped in case of flooding.* 
Then Jared’s brother called the attention of the 
Lord to the fact that there was no light in 
the barges; and the Lord said unto him “What 
will ye that I should do that ye may have light 

* An explanatory foot-note referring to this re¬ 
markable description reads as follows: “Both of these 
air-holes, when stopped, were water-tight. Sometimes 
the vessels were under water; sometimes they may 
have turned bottom upward; when riding upon the 
surface the uppermost air-hole, at times, could, with 
safety, be opened.” — Doubtless the quadrupeds aboard 
had plenty of lively exercise. And apparently there 
were swarms of honey-bees aboard. (See Book of 
Ether, Chapters 2 and 6.) 



14 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


in your vessels? For behold, ye can not have 
windows, for they will be dashed in pieces; 
neither shall ye take fire with you, for ye shall 
not go by the light of fire/’ etc. Whereupon 
Jared’s brother went forth unto a mountain, “and 
did molten out of a rock sixteen small stones, 
white and clear even as transparent glass.”* 
These stones he carried to the top of the moun¬ 
tain, and then called upon the Lord, asking the 
Lord to look upon him in pity, and to touch the 
stones with his finger, “and prepare them that 
they may shine forth in darkness,” so that the 
barges might be lighted in crossing the sea; and 
“the Lord stretched forth his hand and touched 
the stones, one by one, with his finger; and the 
veil was taken from off the eyes of the brother of 
Jared, and he saw the finger of the Lord.” After 
a little time the Lord showed himself fully to 
Jared’s brother, because never before had any 
one come before him with such exceeding faith 
as was exhibited by him; and the Lord declared 
that never before had he shown himself unto 
man.f Following immediately is the statement 
that all this must be written, in language which 
the Lord would confound, and sealed up, along 

* A foot-note referring to- this sentence reads as 
follows: “From this it is evident that the art of mak¬ 
ing glass was known at that early period.” 

f A foot-note referring to this remarkable incident 
reads as follows: “The broher of Jared saw the pre¬ 
existent spirit of Jesus, which afterward was enclosed 
in a* tabernacle of flesh and bones. When the Lord 
appeared unto Adam and the righteous, and unto 
Enoch and the people of ancient Zion, it was probably 
by vision, and not by a full view of his personage, 
as was given to the brother of Jared.” 



THE BOOK OF MORMON 


15 


with two stones which the Lord gave Jared’s 
brother, which he said would, in due time, “mag¬ 
nify to the eyes of men” the things written. 

The next proceeding was to place one of the 
sixteen stones in each end of each of the eight 
barges; and then “all manner of food” for the 
people, and “food for their flocks and herds, and 
whatsoever beast, or animal, or fowl, they should 
carry with them,” was put aboard the barges, 
and the people then went aboard. And “it came 
to pass that the Lord God caused that there 
should a furious wind blow upon the face of the 
waters, toward the promised land, and thus they 
were tossed upon the waves of the sea before the 
wind.” They were “many times buried in the 
depths of the sea, because of the mountain waves 
which broke upon them, and also the great and 
terrible tempests which were caused by the fierce¬ 
ness of the wind;” but “there was no water that 
could hurt them, their vessels being tight like 
unto a dish, and also they were tight like unto 
the ark of Noah.” “And it came to pass that the 
wind did never cease to blow toward the promised 
land while they were upon the waters . . . . ; 

and thus they'were driven forth.” “And no 
monster of the sea could break them, neither 
whale that could mar them; and they had light 
continually, whether it was above the water or 
under the water.” After they had been upon the 
water “three hundred and forty and four days” 
they landed upon the shore of the promised land. 
A foot-note here states that the landing was “on 
the western coast, and probably south of the Gulf 


16 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


of California, and north of the land of Desola¬ 
tion, which was north of the Isthmus.”* 

ANIMALS. 

The writer has not found an explicit state¬ 
ment that domestic animals were taken aboard the 
barges of the Jared expedition; but it is de¬ 
clared that the Lord commanded the brother of 
Jared to gather together their flocks, both male 
and female, of every kind, as already stated, and 
of course so faithful a servant did not fail to 
obey the commandment. And when the barges 
were prepared for the voyage, food for their 
flocks and herds, and whatsoever beast, or animal, 
or fowl they should carry with them was taken 
aboard. Therefore there is no escaping the in¬ 
ference that domestic animals of every kind were 
carried to the promised land. And we find that 
soon after arrival they possessed “all manner of 
cattle, of oxen, and cows, and of sheep, and of 
swine, and of goats, and also many other kinds 
of animals which were useful for the food of 
man; and they also had horses, and asses; and 


* In an article headed “Exposition of Mormon- 
ism,” written by a Protestant clergyman of Salt Lake 
City, and published in 1882, the writer, in referring to 
the claim of the Mormons as to the first inhabitants 
of the Western Hemisphere, states the claim to be 
that “they came as colonists from Palestine, across 
Behring Straits, into America”; and no mention is 
made of more than one expedition.' Evidently this 
is simply a random declaration, for it is absolutely 
at variance with the foregoing statements, which are 
taken directly from the “Book of Mormon,” or the 
Mormon Bible. 



THE BOOK OF MORMON 


17 


there were elephants, and cureloms, and cumoms 
— all of which were useful unto man, and more 
especially the elephants, and cureloms, and 
cumoms.” 

Readers will now please refer to what is said 
of animals in connection with the people of the 
Lehi expedition, on page 9. Those people did 
not take animals with them, but they found in 
the promised land “beasts in the forests of every 
kind, both the cow and the ox, and the ass and 
the horse, and the goat and the wild goat, and 
all manner of wild animals which were for the 
use of men.” 

We have now reached a point from which 
readers may see clearly what it is proposed to 
show — that the fraudulent character of the 
Mormon Bible is exhibited through its own con¬ 
tents, as, for instance, in this: If the statements 
as to the animals mentioned were true, what be¬ 
came of their descendants? Surely no candid, 
thoughtful, and unprejudiced person will claim 
that they were all destroyed. If they existed in 
a wild state, as it is claimed they were found by 
the Lehi expedition, why should they not have 
continued to propagate and exist ? And the same 
query is pertinent as to those claimed to have 
been brought to the country by the Jared expedi¬ 
tion, for some of them would have escaped, and 
become wild, as is the case with horses and cattle 
in the far West at the present time. But history 
tells us that when Columbus discovered America 
there was not a horse, nor an ass, nor a cow, nor 
a goat, nor a hog, in all the country. The nearest 
approach to the ccuv was the buffalo, and the 
2MB 


18 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


only animal bearing any resemblance to swine 
was the diminutive peccary, which is not a true 
pig at all. The only sheep was the Rocky Moun¬ 
tain variety, which never was and never will be 
domesticated, for it will inhabit no part of the 
country except mountains. That there were no 
elephants need not be stated. As to “cureloms” 
and “cumoms,” if it were not for the declaration 
that they were useful creatures we might class 
them with a mythical ravenous beast which a 
jocular Irish friend of the writer declares ex¬ 
isted in Ireland in ancient times, called the “Job- 
berwock.” 

INDIANS. 

The writer of this ridiculous book doubtless 
thought it necessary to account for the existence 
of the American Indian; and so we are told in 
the Second Book of Nephi that the Lamanites — 
the followers of the rebellious Laman — were 
subjected to a curse, and that, though they had 
been “white, and exceeding fair and delight¬ 
some,” .... “the Lord God did cause a 

skin of blackness to come upon them.” And in 
the Book of Alma we read that they “were dark, 
according to the mark which was set upon their 
fathers, which was a curse upon them because 
of their transgression, and their rebellion against 
their brethren;” also, that “their heads were 
shorn; and they were naked, save it were skin 
which was girded about their loins, and also their 
armor which was girded about them, and their 
bows, and their arrows, and their stones, and 
their slings, etc.” In the Book of Mormon a 


THE BOOK OF MORMON 


19 


foot-note to the seventh chapter reads “Lamanites 
or Indiansand the same explanatory foot-note 
is found in the Third Book of Nephi. In the 
Book of Enos it is stated that “they became wild, 
and ferocious, and a bloodthirsty people, full of 
idolatry and filthiness, feeding upon beasts of 
prey, dwelling in tents, wandering about in the 
wilderness, with a short skin girdle about their 
loins, and their heads were shaven, and their skill 
was in the bow, and in the cimeter, and in the 
axe; and many of them did eat nothing save it 
was raw meat.” In the Book of Jarom is the 
statement that “they loved murder, and would 
drink the blood of beasts.” But in the Third 
Book of Nephi there is the astonishing declara¬ 
tion, concerning some of them who had united 
with the Nephites, that “their curse was taken 
from them, and their skin became white like unto 
the Nephites; and their young men and their 
daughters became exceeding fair.” And in the 
Book of Alma it is declared that this curse was 
removed from the Lamanites of four provinces 
and three cities, “who were converted unto the 
Lord.” 

POLYGAMY. 

Recent events having brought forth a vigor¬ 
ous and general protest concerning the matter of 
polygamy, attention should be invited to what 
is said upon this subject in the Book of Jacob, in 
contrast with the later revelation of Joseph 
Smith, the modern prophet. A large portion 
of the second and third chapters of this book is 
devoted to very severe condemnation of the prac- 


20 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


tice, and to admonition and .warning against it. 
In pursuance of “a strict commandment received 
from God,” Jacob (one of the younger sons of 
Lehi) addressed his people in the temple “con¬ 
cerning their wickedness and abominations.” He 
spoke first of their pride because of riches, and 
then of their “grosser crimes,” including poly¬ 
gamy, of which, after referring to the fact that 
the Nephites “seek to excuse themselves .... 
because of the things which are written concern¬ 
ing David, and Solomon his son,” he said: 

“Behold, David and Solomon truly had many 
wives and concubines, which thing was abomin¬ 
able before me, saith the Lord; wherefore, thus 
saith the Lord, I have led this people forth out 
of the land of Jerusalem, by the power of mine 
arm, that I might raise up unto me a righteous 
branch from the fruit of the loins of Joseph. 
Wherefore I, the Lord God, will not suffer that 
this people shall do like them of old. Wherefore 
my brethren, hear me, and hearken to the word 
of the Lord; for there shall not any man among 
you have save it be C>ne wife, and concubines he 
shall have none; for I,, the Lord God, delightcth 
in the chastity of women, .... saith the 
Lord of Hosts. Wherefore, this people shall 
keep my commandments, saith the Lord of Hosts, 

or cursed be the land for their sakes.For 

behold, I, the Lord, have seen the sorrow and 
heard the mourning of the daughters of my peo¬ 
ple in the land of Jerusalem — yea, and in all the 
lands of my people — because of the wickedness 
and abominations of their husbands; and I will 
not suffer, saith the Lord of Hosts, that the cries 


THE BOOK OF MORMON 


21 


of the fair daughters of this people, which I have 
led out of the land of Jerusalem, shall come up 
unto me, against the men of my people, saith the 
Lord of Hosts; for they shall not lead away 
captive the daughters of my people because of 
their tenderness, save I shall visit them with a 
sore curse, even unto destruction .... And now 
behold, my brethren, ye know that these com¬ 
mandments were given to our father, Lehi ; ; 
wherefore ye have known them before; and ye 
have come unto great condemnation, for ye have 
done these things which ye ought not to have done. 
Behold, ye have done greater iniquities than the' 
Lamanites, our brethren. Ye have broken the 
hearts of your tender wives, and lost the confi¬ 
dence of your children, because of your bad ex¬ 
amples before them; and the sobbings of their 
hearts ascend up to God against you. And be¬ 
cause of the strictness of the word of God, which 
cometh down against you, many hearts died, 
pierced with deep w r ounds.” .... 

“Wherefore, ye shall remember your children, 
how that ye have grieved their hearts because of 
the example that ye have set before them; and 
also, remember that ye may, because of your 
filthiness, bring your children unto destruction, 
and their sins be heaped upon your heads at the 
last day. O my brethren, hearken unto my word; 
arouse the faculties of your soul; shake your¬ 
selves, that ye may awake from the slumber of 
death; and loose yourselves from the pains of 
hell, that ye may not become angels of the Devil, 
to be cast into that lake of fire and brimstone 
which is the second death.” “And now I, Jacob, 


22 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


spake many more things unto the people of Nephi, 
warning them against fornication and lascivious¬ 
ness, and every kind of sin, telling them the awful 
consequences of them.” 

The foregoing is quite wholesome reading; but 
it appears not to have been satisfactory to the 
modern prophet Joseph Smith, the original head of 
the Church of Latter-Day Saints, for on the 12th 
of July, 1843, he gave forth the new revelation 
justifying polygamy. It is said that this was 
done to pacify his wife, who was bitter in her 
complaints of his conduct, and to silence the ob¬ 
jections of the Saints.* 

IMMENSE NUMBERS SLAIN. 

Not many years elapsed after the arrival of 
either expedition until dissensions began, which 
resulted in factions and wars, with many dis¬ 
astrous results and heavy losses. War was of 
such frequent recurrence that the unbelieving 
reader must wonder that the writer of tft^ fabu¬ 
lous history shows a constant and surprising in¬ 
crease in population. Except in two instances 


* In 1894 the writer became acquainted with a 
young man in Utah who stated that his father went 
to that country from the East, accompanied by his 
wife; that in course of time he married five other 
women, while his lawful wife was living; that in the 
six families there were thirty-six children; and that 
he was the youngest child of the lawful wife, and 
the only one of the thirty-six not baptized according 
to the requirement of the Mormon Church — the omis¬ 
sion in his case having been in pursuance of a request 
of his mother, on her death-bed, he being then an 
infant. 



THE BOOK OF MORMON 


23 T 


definite losses are not stated, though in some 
places it is declared that so many were slain that 
they could not be numbered. The exceptions are 
the following: 

It is related in the Book of Mormon that in 
a single battle between the Nephites and the 
Lamanites (factions of the descendants of the 
people of the Lehi expedition) there were slain 
two hundred and thirty thousand (230,000) of 
the former — all except twenty-four who were in 
Mormon’s portion of the army, and “a few who 
escaped into the south countriesand after the 
battle those who had escaped into the country 
southward were hunted by the Lamanites and de¬ 
stroyed, as were also all the others save Moroni, 
the son of Mormon. The loss of the Lamanites 
is not stated. The text indicates that this great 
destruction in battle was of men only, though 
in preceding conflicts women and children had 
not always been spared. However, “all the re¬ 
mainder” of the Nephites had been gathered to¬ 
gether preceding the battle, and the women and 
children, and the men also, were filled with ter¬ 
ror when they beheld the great number of the 
Lamanites; and as subsequently “the Lamanites 
hunted the Nephites dbwn, from city to city, and 
from place to place, even until they were no 
more” (as declared by Moroni, in finishing his 
father’s record,) it follows that the women and 
children were all destroyed, notwithstanding it 
does not appear that they were destroyed during 
the battle. 

This battle occurred at the hill ©t Cumorah, 
where the two armies met pursuant to prear- 


24 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


rangement; and in this hill — which a foot-note 
states is in Manchester, Ontario county, New 
York, — Mormon, who was becoming old, “hid 
up (preceding the battle) all the records which 
had been entrusted to him by the hand of the 
Loid,” save a few plates that he gave to his son 
Moroni. This was three hundred and eighty-four 
years after the coming of Christ — so stated. 
Subsequently Moroni finished the records of his 
father, and hid them in the earth — presumably 
where the others were hidden, though not so 
stated. This is declared by Moroni to have been 
four hundred years after the birth of Christ. And 
it was the time fixed by prophecy, found in the 
Book of Alma, for the extinction of the Nephites. 

In the Book of Ether we find that in a war 
between factions of the descendants of the peo¬ 
ple of the Jared expedition (referred to in the 
Book of Moroni as “the people of Jared”) there 
were slain, in the course of one war, up to a cer¬ 
tain time, “two millions of mighty men, and also 
their wives and their children”—and these of one 
side or faction only. A foot-note states that “in¬ 
cluding wives and children the numbers, very prob¬ 
ably, must have been from ten to fifteen millions.” 
The loss of the other faction is not stated. An 
effort for peace was then made, but it was not 
successful, and the war was continued. Finally, 
“all the. people, upon all the face of the land, who 
had not been slain,* save it was Ether” (who 
was a prophet, and apparently was preserved as 
historian,) — both factions, it is stated — were 

* The clause “who had not been slain” is a correct 
quotation. 



THE BOOK OF MORMON 


25 


gathered together at the hill Ramah, which, a 
foot-note states, is the same hill called Cumorah 
by the Nephites. This gathering together of all 
the people required four years. “Men, women, 
and children were armed with weapons of war, 
having shields, and breast-plates, and head-plates, 
and being clothed after the manner of war, they 
did march forth one against another to battle.” 
After two days of conflict the commander of one 
faction proposed peace, and offered to surrender 
the kingdom; but “Satan had full power over 
the hearts of the people,” and the next morning 
“they went again to battle.” They fought three 
days more, and all were slain save fifty-two of one 
army and sixty-nine of the other. The fighting 
was continued, and at the close of the next day 
there were thirty-two survivors of one side and 
twenty-seven of the other — “large and mighty 
men, as to the strength of men.” The fighting 
was resumed next day, and after three hours they 
fainted with the loss of blood; and when suffi¬ 
ciently recovered, the men of one party endeav¬ 
ored to escape, but they were overtaken the next 
day, and fighting was resumed, when all were 
slain except the two leaders of the armies, and 
finally one of these slew the other by cutting off 
his head, and then the victor “fell to the earth, 
and became as if he had no life.” Therefore it 
appears that the people of Jared were all de¬ 
stroyed.* 

* The leader who “fell to the earth, and became 
as if he had no life,” was Coriantumr; but, according 
to the Book of Omni, he did not die then. In the 
account of the uniting of the people of Mosiah and 



26 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


In all this there appears quite a compre¬ 
hensive arrangement — by the inventor of the 
stories, of course. The battle which resulted in 
the destruction of the people of Jared, and that 
dn which the Nephites were destroyed — the lat¬ 
ter including, of course, the descendants of the 
third expedition, who united with them in Zara¬ 
hemla — were fought at the same place. It 
should be borne in mind that the people of Jared 
had been annihilated before the Nephites learned 
anything about them.* Therefore when the 
Nephites were exterminated the only people pre¬ 
served were the iniquitous Lamanites, upon 
whom the Lord, long before, had caused a dark 
skin to appear, as a curse, because of their wick¬ 
edness — “Indians,” as explained. The result, 
it will be observed, corresponds with real history 

the people of Zarahemla (the descendants of the third 
expedition) appears the following: “And it came to 
pass, in the days of Mosiah, there was a large stone 
brought unto him, with engravings on it; and he did 
interpret the engravings by the gift and power of 
God. And they gave an account of one Coriantumr, 
and the slain of his people,; and Coriantumr was dis¬ 
covered by the people of Zarahemla, and he dwelt 
with them for the space of nine moons. It also spake 
a few words concerning his fathers. And his first 
parents came out from the Tower, at the time the 
Lord confounded the language of the people; and the 
severity of the Lord fell upon them according to his 
judgments, which are just; and their bones lay scat¬ 
tered in the land northward.” — There is no statement 
as to who prepared this record. And it is not ex¬ 
plained how Coriantumr managed to reach the land 
of Zarahemla, in South America, from the battle-field, 
which, as has been stated, was in the country that 
is now Ontario county, New York. 

*See pages 7 and 25, and also foot-note on page 35. 



THE BOOK OF MORMON 27 

in one particular — that when Columbus arrived 
there were no white people in America. But 
it should be noted that this great destruction, 
even to annihilation, as well as preceding wars 
and other great calamities, were pursuant to 
prophecy, and because of the great wickedness 
and abominations of the people; and yet the 
Latter-Day Saints are prospering, and rapidly in¬ 
creasing numerically, notwithstanding many of¬ 
fences truthfully charged against them, including 
polygamy and the Mountain Meadows massacre. 

CALAMITIES. - ANCIENT MOUNDS. 

In the Book of Ether we find the following: 
“And there was great calamity in all the land, 
for they [the prophets, who had been put to 
death,] had testified that a greater curse should 
come upon the land, and also upon the people, 
and that there should be a great destruction 
among them, such an one as never had been 
upon the face of the earth; and their bones should 
become as heaps of earth upon the face of the 
land except they should repent of their wicked¬ 
ness.” They did not “hearken unto the voice of 
the Lord,” and the prophecies were fulfilled. A 
foot-note here states that the heaps of earth re¬ 
ferred to are now “the ancient mounds of North 
America.” This is simply monumental trash. 
The author of the foot-note must surely either 
have counted largely upon the ignorance and 
credulity of persons who might read it, or have 
been very ignorant himself in regard to these 
mounds.* 


This account relates to the people of Jared. 



28 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


GREAT DESTRUCTION. 

In the Third Book of Nephi is an account of 
far greater destruction than the foregoing, but in 
this there is no reference to the ancient mounds.* 
This also was in fulfillment of prophecy, which 
pertained to a period of darkness that was to 
come upon the land for the space of three days 
—both the destruction and the darkness to serve 
as signs of the death of Jesus Christ. The de¬ 
struction occurred about a third of a century 
after the birth of Christ, which event was six 
hundred years after Lehi left Jerusalem with his 
expedition, according to Mormon chronology; 
and according to a foot-note “the darkness com¬ 
menced when Jesus expired.” The darkness fol¬ 
lowed immediately after the destruction referred 
to; and preceding it there was “a great and ter¬ 
rible tempest;” “terrible thunder that shook the 
whole earth;” “exceeding sharp lightnings such 
as never had been known in all the land;” and 
“whirlwinds,” and “great quaking of the whole 
earth.” Sixteen great cities (named) were de¬ 
stroyed — six by fire, one was sunk into the 
depths of the sea, three were sunk and then wa¬ 
ters appeared where they had been, one was cov¬ 
ered up and a mountain appeared on its site, and 
five were covered up by or sunk into the earth; 
and the inhabitants were destroyed with them. 
“And many great and notable cities were sunk, 
and many were burned, and many were shook till 
the buildings thereof had fallen to the earth. 


* The account that follows is attributed to the 
Nephites. 



THE BOOK OF MORMON 


29 


. . . . and the places were left desolate/’ 

“And there were some cities which remained, but 
the damage thereof was exceeding great.” The 
land northward suffered more than that south¬ 
ward,* “for behold the whole face of the land 
was changed, because of the tempest, and the 
whirlwinds, and the thunderings, and the light¬ 
nings, and the exceeding great quaking of the 
whole earth; . . . and thus the face of the 
whole earth became deformed.” And all this 
within “about the space of three hours.” 

OTHER CALAMITIES. 

After one long period of prosperity, and free¬ 
dom from war, during which the Lord had poured 
out blessings because of the righteousness of the 
rulers and the people, “there began again to be 
exceeding great wickedness upon the face of the 
land;” whereupon a curse came upon the face 
of the land, as foretold by the prophets. There 
came a great dearth upon the land, for there was 
no rain upon the face of the earth, and the people 
“began to be destroyed exceeding fastand there 
came forth poisonous serpents, which poisoned 
many of the people, and the flocks did flee from 
the serpents toward the land southward; but 
many animals perished by the way, though some 
escaped; and the people, who followed after the 
flocks, fed upon the carcasses of the dead. The 
Lord then caused the serpents to cease to pursue 


* “Northward” and “southward” are explained in 
a foot-note as meaning North America and South 
America. 



30 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


the flocks, and that they should hedge up the way, 
so that the people could not pass. Whereupon the 
people, then seeing that they must perish, began 
to repent, and to cry unto the Lord; and when 
they had “humbled themselves sufficiently before 
the Lord” he sent rain upon the face of the earth, 
and so saved them from famine. 

When such awfully disastrous natural phe¬ 
nomena as have been described are considered, 
along with many destructive wars, and also 
drouth, and famine, and poisonous serpents, there 
is enough to excite wonder that there were sur¬ 
vivors sufficient to constitute such immense 
armies as were engaged in the final conflicts — 
and especially so when the fact is contemplated 
that there were no accessions by Way of immigra¬ 
tion from the Old World, and that the immense 
population all descended from the few persons 
claimed to have composed the expeditions men¬ 
tioned.* 


* In the First Book of Nephi it appears that the 
Lehi expedition consisted of Lehi and his family — 
self, wife, and six sons (two of the sons being young, 
having been born in the wilderness after the family 
departed from Jerusalem); Zoram, who had been a 
servant of Laban (at Jerusalem), whom Nephi slew 
in order to secure certain record plates (see foot-note 
on page 41); and the family of Ishmael, in which were 
his widow, two sons, and five daughters — the father 
having died in the wilderness. Ishmael’s sons had 
families, four of his daughters married sons • of Lehi, 
and the other married Zoram — the marriages having 
occurred in the wilderness. (Where the members of 
Lehi’s family are specified, daughters are not men¬ 
tioned; but in the Second Book of Nephi it is stated 
that when Nephi fled from Laman and Lemuel, in the 
promised land, he took his sisters with him.) — The 



THE BOOK OF MORMON 


31 


Apparently what has already been shown is 
sufficient as to what this preposterous book por¬ 
trays through its own contents. Readers will dis¬ 
cover numerous matters to which special atten¬ 
tion has not been invited, but which are so plainly 
open to adverse criticism as not to require par¬ 
ticular designation. 

PLATES AND TRANSLATION. 

Probably a majority of people who have heard 
of the Mormons have heard also that plates con¬ 
taining the fabulous records upon which their 
church claims to have been founded were declared 
to have been discovered where they had been hid¬ 
den in the earth, and that the records thereon 
were translated into the English language in a 
mysterious way; and it seems to be the under¬ 
standing generally that the plates were of gold, 
though there is no authority in the Mormon Bible 
for this except as to one lot of twenty-four, as is 
shown in this account.* * It seems advisable, 
therefore, to present a statement concerning them , 
as comprehensive as possible within reasonab le 

third expedition is referred to in a foot-note as “a 
small colony from Jerusalem.” (See Book of Ether, 
Ch. xi.) — The Jared expedition consisted of Jared 
and his brother and their families, and “some others 
and their families,” friends of Jared and his brother — 
presumably not a large number, as otherwise the word 
some would not have been used. 

* In the “Testimony of Eight Witnesses” printed 
on the leaf next following that containing the title- 
page of the book, these witnesses declare simply that 
the plates had “the appearance of gold.” But this 
has no bearing in the matter. 



.3*2 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


limits. The accounts pertaining to them are quite 
mystifying; and cross-references referring to 
them throughout the book are so numerous as to 
be both perplexing and tedious, and probably 
were so intended. 

The first mention of records is at the begin¬ 
ning of the account of the Lehi expedition from 
Jerusalem. Apparently Lehi, the head of the ex¬ 
pedition, kept a record. Then Nephi, his son, not 
only made from this an abridged Account, but also 
another account, entirely his own, upon plates 
made with his own hands. 

The next plates mentioned were those taken 
from the treasury of Laban, at Jerusalem, as 
described in a foot-note on page 41 follow¬ 
ing. These are stated to have been of brass. If 
the claim as to the discovery of plates were true, 
these would have been of the number found, for 
Lehi prophesied that “these plates of brass should 
go forth unto all nations, kindreds, tongues, and 
people who were of his seed; wherefore, he said 
that these plates of brass should never perish, 
neither should they be dimmed by time.” .... 
“Wherefore it was wisdom of the Lord that we 
should carry them with us as we journeyed in the 
wilderness toward the land of promise.” And 
in reading it is found that they were preserved, 
and hidden with the rest. 

Then comes the account of the first lot of 
plates made by Nephi in pursuance of a com¬ 
mandment of the Lord, which was very soon 
after arrival at the land of promise. These were 
made of ore, but the kind of ore is not stated. 
Then he received a commandment that “the min- 


THE BOOK OF MORMON 


33 


istry and the prophecies, the more plain and 
precious parts of them,” should be written upon 
these plates. The accounts of all the plates and 
records referred to so far are found in full in 
the First Book of Nephi. 

In the Second Book of Nephi is an account of 
another set of plates, in part as follows: 

“And thirty years had passed away from the 
time we left Jerusalem.* And I, Nephi, had kept 
the records upon my plates which I had made, of 
my people, thus far; and it came to pass that 
the Lord God said unto me: Make other plates; 
and thou shalt engraven many things upon them 
which are good in my sight, for the profit of thy 
people.” 

Then there was the record of Mormon, which 
he called the Book of Mormon. And further as 
to Mormon’s work: It appears that when he was 
“about ten years of age” Ammaron went to him 
and said unto him that when he should reach the 
age <?f “about twenty-four years” he should go to 
a hill called Shim, in the land Antum, where he 
should find all the sacred engravings, deposited 
there by him; that he should take the plates of 
Nephi unto himself, and engrave upon them what 
he should observe, and leave the remainder. This 
Mormon did; and subsequently, fearing the 
Lamanites would discover the remainder and de¬ 
stroy them, he went to the hill and took them 
also. Then he made an abridgment from the 

* This would be twenty-two years, or somewhat 
less, after arrival in America, for they were in the 
wilderness eight years. 


3 MB 



34 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


plates of Nephi, and with this he put some “small 
plates” found among the records. 

All the records mentioned pertained to the 
Nephites, and they were passed from one ruler 
or prophet to another, the several custodians hav¬ 
ing added to the engravings. In the Book of 
Helaman it is stated that “there are many books 
and many records of every kind, and they have 
been kept chiefly by the Nephites; and they have 
been handed down from one generation to another 
by the Nephites.” Finally, it appears in the 
Words of Mormon that all these records came 
into his possession; and then in the Book of 
Mormon it is stated that, preceding the great 
battle in which the Nephites were exterminated, 
Mormon “hid them up in the hill Cumorah” -- 
stated elsewhere to be in Manchester, Ontario 
county, New York — all except a few that he 
gave to his son Moroni; and upon these Moroni 
finished the record of his father, and then hid 
them up. 

Beside the records of the Nephites, there was 
a record of “the people of Jared,” who came from 
the “Great Tower.” This record was on twenty- 
four plates “of pure gold,” found by an exploring 
party of forty-three men sent out by King Limhi, 
though they were not sent for that purpose* 
They were found in a land that had at one time 
been densely inhabited, but was then a land of 
desolation, where bones of dead people and beasts, 
ruins of buildings, etc., were found in great 

* Where first mentioned these plates are declared 
to have been of pure gold, though they are referred to 
in another chapter of the same book as “plates of ore. ,y 



THE BOOK OF MORMON 


35 


quantity. These plates, Moroni (the son of Mor¬ 
mon) states, were used by him in writing the 
Book of Ether, which, he says, is an abridgment, 
and does not give “the full account, but a part 
of the account, from the Tower down until that 
people were destroyed.”* And he did not use 
“the first part of the record, which speaks con¬ 
cerning the creation of the world, and also of 
Adam, and gives an account from that time even 
to. the Great Tower;” but, he states, “they are 
had upon the plates, and whoso findeth them, the 
same will have power that he may get the full 
account.” 

The beginning of this record, as given, pre¬ 
cedes the departure of the people of Jared for 
the land of promise; but the record was brought 
with them, for the plates were found in this land. 
Following is the account: 

“And it came to pass that the Lord said unto 
the brother of Jared, Behold, thou shalt not suf¬ 
fer these things which ye have seen and heard 
to go forth unto the world until the time cometh 
that I shall glorify my name in the flesh; where¬ 
fore ye shall treasure up the things which ye have 
seen and heard, and show it to no man. And be¬ 
hold, when ye shall come unto me ye shall write 
them, and shall seal them up that no one can in¬ 
terpret them; for ye shall write them in a lan- 

* From this it appears that this people were de¬ 
stroyed prior to the destruction 'of the Nephites, for 
they had been destroyed when the Nephites discov¬ 
ered the plates. This may be verified also by another 
reference in the Book of Ether, by two references in 
the Book of Alma, three in the Book of Mosiah, and 
one in the Book of Helaman. 



36 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


guage that they can not read. And behold, these 
two stones will I give unto thee, and ye shall seal 
them up also with the things which ye shall write. 
For behold, the language which ye shall write I 
have confounded; wherefore I will cause in my 
own due time that these stones shall magnify to 
the eyes of men these things which ye shall 
write.”* .... “And the Lord commanded 
the brother of Jared to go down out of the 
mount from the presence of the Lord, and write 
the things which he had seen; and they were for¬ 
bidden to come unto the children of men until 
after that he should be lifted up upon the cross.” 

In the Book of Mosiah it appears that this 
king (into whose custody had come these records, 
and also all the records pertaining to the Nephites, 
and all the things which had been preserved) 
translated the records on the twenty-four plates 
of gold, by means of the two stones mentioned — 
the stones being “fastened into the two rims of a 

* The discovery of these plates by the Nephites 
appears to have been quite fortunate, as it resulted 
not only in bringing together the records of the people 
connected with the expeditions of Lehi and Jared, 
but also in the recovery of the two interpreting stones, 
through which all translations are assumed to have 
been made, and which, it appears, were hidden again 
after Smith was through with them, to be brought 
forth in due time for further translations. 

Another remarkable interpreting stone is men¬ 
tioned in the Book of Alma. This was prepared by the 
Lord for his servant Gazelem, to be used in discov¬ 
ering “secret works,” and “works of darkness, and 
wickedness, and abominations.” 



THE BOOK OF MORMON 


37 


bow/’* These stones were called “interpreters 
“and no man can look in them except he be 
commanded, lest he should look for that he ought 
not, and he should perish.” 

And there is this also as to translation: 
Moroni says of the record he made to finish that 
of his father that “none can have power to bring 
it to light save it be given him of God; . . . . 
and blessed be him that shall bring this thing to 
light, for it shall be brought out of> darkness unto 
light, according to the word of God; yea it shall 
be brought out of the earth, and it shall shine 
forth out of darkness, and come unto the knowl¬ 
edge of the people; and it shall be done by the 
power of God.” Doubtless this refers to the in¬ 
terpreting stones. 

Finally, in the Second Book of Nephi, and also 
in the Book of Ether, the plan for bringing forth 
the records is developed. In the former, Nephi 
refers to a sealed book, in which shall be “a reve¬ 
lation from God, from the beginning of the world 
to the ending thereof.” “This book shall be de¬ 
livered unto a man,f and he shall deliver the 
words of the book.” But a portion of it he shall 
not deliver, for that part shall be kept “until the 
own due time of the Lord.” This book consists 
of the hidden plates — so stated in the Book of 
Ether. In both these books it is stated that the 
records shall be brought forth in the presence of 
three witnesses, and, says Nephi, “none other 

* And there was another record that he trans¬ 
lated — engravings found on “a large stone brought 
unto him.” (See foot-note on page 26.) 

t Explained in a foot-note to be Joseph Smith, Jr. 



38 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


save it be a few according to the will of God, to 
bear testimony/’ In the Book of Ether is the 
declaration that “the testimony of the three, and 
this work, in which shall be shown forth the 
power of God, and also his word, of which the 
Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost beareth 
record — and all this shall stand as a testimony 
against the world at the last day.” Then in the 
front of the Mormon Bible are two certificates — 
one by three and one by eight confessed witnesses 
— testifying to the bringing forth and translation 
of the records. 

And this is not all, for in Second Nephi it is 
commanded that the plates shall be sealed up 
and hidden again, to remain till the time shall 
come when the part not translated shall be re¬ 
vealed to the world. Therefore it appears that 
there is to be another book. 

Surely any person of sound intellect should 
be able to see that all this is simply outrageous 
and sacrilegious stuff and nonsense. 

TESTIMONY AS TO FABRICATION. 

Attention will now be invited to testimony 
adduced only a few years after the Mormon Bible 
was published. 

In 1840 a work was published at Painesville, 
Ohio, (near which place, at Kirtland, the Mor¬ 
mons erected their first temple,) by E. D. Howe, 
entitled “History of Mormonism,” which gives 
almost conclusive evidence that the historical por¬ 
tion of the Book of Mormon, or Mormon Bible, 
was written by one Solomon Spalding. From this 
work the following facts are derived: 


THE BOOK OF MORMON 


39 


Mr. Spalding was born in Connecticut in 
1761, graduated at Dartmouth College in 1785, 
and, having failed in mercantile business, re¬ 
moved in 1809 to Conneaut, Ashtabula county, 
Ohio. About the year 1812 his brother John vis¬ 
ited him at that place. He gave the following 
testimony concerning his brother Solomon’s 
work: 

“He then told me that he was writing a book, 
which he intended to have printed, the avails of 
which, he thought, would enable him to pay all his 
debts. The book was entitled ‘Manuscript > 
Found,’ of which he read me many passages. It 
was an historical romance of the first settlers of 
America, endeavoring to show that the American 
Indians are the descendants of the Jews, or the 
Lost Tribes. It gave a detailed account of their 
journey from Jerusalem, by land and sea, till they 
arrived in America, under the command of Nephi 
and Lehi. They afterward had quarrels and con¬ 
tentions, and separated into two distinct nations, 
one of which he denominated Nephites, and the 
other Lamanites. Cruel and bloody wars ensued, 
in which great multitudes were slain. They 
buried their dead in large heaps, which caused 
the mounds so common in this country. Their 
arts, sciences, and civilization were brought into 
view, in order to account for all the curious an¬ 
tiquities found in various parts of North and 
South America. I have recently read the Book 
of Mormon, and to my great surprise I find nearly 
the same historical matter, names, etc., as they 
were in my brother’s writings. I well remember 
that he wrote in the old style, and commenced 


40 THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 

about every sentence with ‘And it came to pass/ 
or ‘Now it came to pass/ the same as in the Book 
of Mormon; and, according to the best of my 
recollection and belief, it is the same as my 
brother Solomon wrote, with the exception of 
the religious matter. By what means it has fal¬ 
len into the hands of Joseph Smith, Jr. I am un¬ 
able to determine.” 

(Signed) John Spalding. 

Mr. Henry Lake, of Conneaut, stated: 

“I left the State of New York late in the year 
1810, and arrived at this place the first of January 
following. Soon after arrival I formed a co¬ 
partnership with Solomon Spalding, for the pur¬ 
pose of rebuilding a forge which he had com* 
menced a year or two before. He very frequently 
read to me from a manuscript which he was 
writing, which he entitled ‘Manuscript Found/ 
and which he represented as being found in this 
town. I spent many hours in hearing him read 
said writings, and became well acquainted with 
the contents. He wished me to assist him in get¬ 
ting his production printed, alleging that a book 
of that kind would meet a rapid sale. I designed 
doing so, but the forge not meeting our anticipa¬ 
tions we failed in business, when I declined hav¬ 
ing anything to do with the publication of the 
book. This book represented the American In¬ 
dians as the descendants of the Lost Tribes, and 
gave an account of their leaving Jerusalem, their 
contentions and wars, which were many and 
great. One time, when he was reading to me 
the tragic account of Laban, I pointed out to him 
what I considered an inconsistency, which he 


THE BOOK OF MORMON 


41 


promised to correct; but by referring to the Book 
of Mormon I find, to my surprise, that it stands 
there just as he read it to me then.* Some 
months ago I borrowed the ‘Golden Bible/ put 
it into my pocket, carried it home, and thought 

* This statement relating to Laban probably refers 
to the slaying of Laban by Nephi, the following 
synopsis of which is gathered from the First Book 
of Nephi: A short time after the departure of Lehi 
and his family from Jerusalem into the wilderness 
the father had a dream, in which he was commanded 
by the Lord that his sons should return to Jerusalem 
and obtain from Laban “the record of the Jews, and 
also a genealogy of his forefathers,” which were 
engraven upon plates of brass. The sons called upon 
Laban, but he refused to surrender the records. They 
then went to the land of their inheritance and gath¬ 
ered together their gold, and silver, and precious 
things (abandoned by the family on departure for the 
wilderness), which they offered to exchange with 
Laban for the records, but he refused, though he kept 
the property, and sent his servants to slay them, but 
they escaped; whereupon an angel of the Lord spoke 
to them, and directed that they go again to Laban’s 
house, and promised them that the Lord would deliver 
Laban into their hands. Then they returned to Jeru¬ 
salem, but all remained without the walls save Nephi, 
who went to Laban’s house, and found him lying 
upon the earth, near the house, drunken with wine; 
whereupon the Spirit “constrained” Nephi to slay him, 
and when he hesitated the Spirit commanded him so 
to do, saying unto him that the Lord had thus deliv¬ 
ered Laban into his hands. Therefore he “obeyed 
the voice of the Spirit, and took Laban by the hair 
of the head and smote off his head with his own 
sword”, which he had taken from Laban when he 
found him. He then dressed himself in Laban’s gar¬ 
ments, girded Laban’s armor about his loins, pro¬ 
ceeded to the treasury, spoke to the servant on guard 
there in the voice of Laban, and by this deception 
secured the records; and the servant (Zoram) joined 
the expedition. 



42 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


no more of it. About a week after, my wife found 
the book in my coat pocket, and commenced read¬ 
ing it aloud as I lay upon the bed. She had not 
read twenty minutes till I was astonished to find 
the same passages in it that Spalding had read to 
me more than twenty years before, from his 
‘Manuscript Found.’ Since that I have more 
fully examined the said ‘Golden Bible,’ and have 
no hesitation in saying that the historical part of 
it is principally, if not wholly, taken from ‘Manu¬ 
script Found.’ I well recollect telling Mr. Spald¬ 
ing that so frequent use of the words ‘And it 
came to pass,’ and ‘Now it came to pass,’ rendered 
it ridiculous.* Spalding left here in 1812, and I 
furnished him means to carry him to Pittsburgh, 
where he said he would get the book printed, and 
pay me; but I never heard any more from him, 
nor of his writings till I saw them in the Book 
of Mormon.” 

(Signed) Henry Lake. 

The testimony of six other witnesses is printed 
in this “History of Mormonism,” all confirming 
the main facts as given in the foregoing state¬ 
ment. Mr. Spalding, it appears, was vain of his 
writings, and was constantly showing them to 
his neighbors, so that reliable testimony to the 
same general facts might have been greatly mul¬ 
tiplied. 

The foregoing testimony, and the statement 
that follows it, are reproduced from Henry 
Howe’s “Historical Collections of Ohio,” origin- 

* The frequent recurrence of these clauses through¬ 
out the book is quite monotonous, and renders the 
reading of it exceedingly tedious. 



THE BOOK OF MORMON 


43 


ally published in 1848. From other reliable 
sources it is learned that Mr. Spalding, after 
graduation at Dartmouth in 1785, was ordained, 
and preached for three or four years, and then 
abandoned the ministry and engaged in mercan¬ 
tile business at Cherry Valley, New York — this 
before he came to Ohio in 1809 5 and that he went 
to Pittsburgh, as stated, and subsequently re¬ 
moved to Amity, Pa., where he died in 1816. As 
to'the disposition of the manuscript, his widow 
published a statement in 1839 declaring that he 
had entrusted it to a printing establishment in 
Pittsburgh in 1812, with which one Sidney Rig- 
donf was connected; that Rigdon copied it; that 
afterward it was returned to Mr. Spalding; and 
that, soon after the return, Mr. Spalding died. 
The widow preserved it till after the Book of 
Mormon was published, when she sent it to Con- 
neaut, Ohio, to be compared with that book. In 
her statement she said she was sure that if her 
husband were living nothing would grieve him 
more than the use made of his work. This is the 
account generally accepted as to the disposition 

t In Howe’s Historical Collections of Ohio it is 
stated that this man Rigdon “resided in Pittsburgh 
about three years, and during the whole of that time, 
as he has since frequently asserted, he abandoned 
preaching, and all other employment, for the purpose 
of studying the Bible; and that soon after he left 
Pittsburgh “the Smith family began to tell about find¬ 
ing a book that contained a history of the first inhab¬ 
itants of America,” etc. — In the Appendix to this 
volume additional facts concerning Rigdon may be 
found. Doubtless he added largely to the work- of 
Spalding, changing it from nonsensical remance to- 
sacrilegious fraud. 



44 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


of the manuscript; but a more specfiic statement 
follows. 

In Scribner's Monthly for the month of Au¬ 
gust, 1880, may be found an interesting affidavit 
by Mrs. M. S. McKinstry, the only child of Mr. 
Spalding (dated April 3, 1880), in which is in¬ 
cluded a statement concerning the disposition of 
the Spalding manuscript. Mrs. McKinstry states 
that in 1834 a man named Hurlburt called at her 
home to see her mother, who resided with her, 
with a view of securing the manuscript. He 
stated that he had been a convert to Mormonism, 
but had given it up, and desired to “expose its 
wickedness.” He stated also that he had been 
sent by a committee — the purpose being to com¬ 
pare the manuscript with the Mormon Bible. 
Mrs. McKinstry states that her mother mistrusted 
Hurlburt, but as he had brought a letter to her 
from her brother, (a lawyer of Onondago Valley, 
New York,) requesting her to loan the manuscript 
to him for the purpose stated, as he was desirious 
to “uproot the Mormon fraud,” she reluctantly 
consented, after Hurlburt had repeatedly prom¬ 
ised to return it. The manuscript was never re¬ 
turned, and Hurlburt would not answer letters 
requesting compliance with his promise. The 
writer of the magazine article that embraces the 
affidavit, and by whom the affidavit was prepared, 
under Mrs. McKinstry’s dictation, states that 
there was a rumor that Hurlburt sold the manu¬ 
script to the Mormons, and that they destroyed 
it. 

The following account of Joseph Smith, and 


THE BOOK OF MORMON 


45 


the publication of the Mormon Bible, appears 
in Ahe Historical Collections referred to: 

( “Joseph Smith, the founder of Mormonism, 
was- born in Sharon, Vermont, December 23, 
1805, and removed to Manchester, Ontario 
county, New York, about the year 1815, with his 
parents, who were in quite humble circumstances. 
He was occasionally employed in Palmyra as a 
laborer, and bore the reputation of a lazy and 
ignorant young man. According to the testimony 
of respectable individuals in that place Smith and 
his father were persons of doubtful moral char¬ 
acter, addicted to disreputable habits, and, more¬ 
over, extremely superstitious, believing in the ex¬ 
istence of witchcraft. They at one time procured 
a mineral rod, and dug in various places for 
money. Smith testified that when digging he had 
seen the pot or chest containing the treasure, but 
never was fortunate enough to get it into his 
hands. He placed a singular looking stone in his 
hat, and pretended by the light of it to make 
many wonderful discoveries of gold, silver, and 
other treasures deposited in the earth. He com¬ 
menced his career as the founder of the new sect 
when about the age of eighteen or nineteen, and 
appointed a number of meetings in Palmyra for 
the purpose of declaring the divine revelations 
which he said were made to him. He was, how¬ 
ever, unable to produce any excitement in the vil¬ 
lage. But very few had curiosity sufficient to 
listen to him. Not having means to print his 
revelations he applied to Mr. Crane, of the So¬ 
ciety of Friends, declaring that he was moved by 
the spirit to call upon him for assistance. This 


46 


THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 


gentleman bid him go to work, or the state prison 
would end his career. Smith had better success 
with Martin Harris, an industrious and thrifty 
farmer of Palmyra, who was worth about $10,000, 
and who became one of his leading disciples. By 
his assistance 5,000 copies of the Mormon Bible 
(so called) were published, at an expense of about 
$3,000. It is possible that Harris might have 
made the advances with the expectation of a 
profitable speculation, as a great sale was an¬ 
ticipated. 

CONCLUSION. 

In conclusion, there is this to be said concern¬ 
ing the apparent tendency of the organization 
now known as the Latter-Day Saints: Its ad¬ 
herents exhibit an intense devotion to their church, 
and they have always manifested impatience of 
restraint from any other authority; and this has, 
not infrequently, extended not only to intolerance, 
but even to open defiance.* This disposition to¬ 
ward exclusiveness — toward church rather than 
State government — is probably due to what is 
found in their Bible, in which the experiences of 
the fabled ancient inhabitants of the “promised 
land,” whether favorable or adverse, are attrib¬ 
uted to the direct authority or intervention of the 
Lord. A recent instance of their open defiance of 
law is found in the election, last autumn, of the 
polygamist Roberts to the United States Con- 

* For a statement showing the conduct of the 
adherents of the church, from the organization of the 
church throughout a period of thirty years following, 
see Appendix to this volume. 



THE BOOK OF MORMON 


47 


gress; and a recent practice in the line of evasion 
or defiance of law, according to reports that ap¬ 
pear to be reliable, is that of going beyond the 
limits of the State of Utah to consummate poly¬ 
gamous marriages. 




























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► 





























APPENDIX 


4* M B 









% 










% 


I 










* 








APPENDIX 

Jt <2* ^ 

For the information of readers desiring to 
know something further of the early history of 
the Mormons, the following brief statement is 
giyen: 

The church was organized at Manchester, New 
York, in the spring of 1830, with only a few 
members. Early in 1831, in pursuance of a reve¬ 
lation promulgated by Joseph Smith, all the mem¬ 
bers removed to Kirtland, Ohio, where the mem¬ 
bership increased largely, and a temple was built. 
Subsequently Smith and Sidney Rigdon made a 
trip westward, with the view of selecting a place 
better suited for headquarters. They chose the 
vicinity of Independence, Missouri, and then re¬ 
turned to Kirtland, where they remained three or 
four years, to make some money, as they stated. 
They started a bank, of which Smith became pres¬ 
ident and Rigdon cashier. A large amount of 
paper money was issued, which was believed to 
be of little, if any, real value, but nevertheless it 
was circulated throughout the surrounding 
country. They were charged with fraud in this 
and other matters, and in the spring of 1832 they 
were taken from their beds by a number of men, 
and tarred and feathered. In 1838 the bank 
failed, as people had expected, and the two men 
fled the country secretly, and in course of time 
reached the new headquarters in Missouri, where 


52 


THE MORMON. BIBLE, OR 


many of their people had already gathered, includ¬ 
ing numerous converts brought from Europe, 
where the church had sent missionaries. These peo¬ 
ple had already become involved in serious quarrels 
with earlier settlers, who charged them with mur¬ 
ders, the burning of houses, and plundering, and 
they were driven from that locality. They went 
to another county, but were soon in trouble there 
also; and in conflicts which resulted a number 
of people were killed. Then came dissensions 
among their own people, and several men aban¬ 
doned the organization. These deserters openly 
accused Smith of various crimes. Late in the 
year their conflicts with other people became so 
common that there was danger of civil war. 
Militia were called out by the governor of the 
State, and Smith and Rigdon were arrested upon 
charges of treason and other serious crimes.* 
The Mormons, not being sufficiently numerous to 
contend against the state troops, agreed to leave 
the state if permitted to depart without molesta¬ 
tion ; and they were given this privilege. They 
crossed the Mississippi into Illinois, where they 
purchased land, and settled. Rigdon, who had 
been released from jail, accompanied them, but 
Smith, who had not been released, escaped from 
jail and joined them. Application for a charter 
for a city, to be named Nauvoo, was made to the 
legislature of Illinois, and the charter was granted 
— the terms of the charter being quite liberal, as, 
among other privileges, the organization of a 

* Affidavits were made by some of the men who 
had abandoned the organization that a part of Smith’s 
programme wa§ to take possession of the State. 



THE BOOK OF MORMON 


53 


military force was permitted. Of this military 
organization Smith appointed himself lieutenant 
general. A grand temple, i2o by 80 feet in di¬ 
mensions, was erected, and the city attained a 
population of 10,000. 

Under the heading “Polygamy” (page 32) it 
is stated that on July 12, 1843, Smith promul¬ 
gated a new revelation, authorizing a plurality of 
wives. This resulted in much excitement, and 
in- 1845 the heads of the church publicly denied 
the new doctrine; and it was not till 1852 that 
the truth was openly admitted. Meantime, how¬ 
ever, in consequence of gross conduct on the part 
of Smith and others, several men whose wives 
had been insulted quit the church, and started a 
newspaper at Nauvoo called the “Expositor ” 
As the name indicates, the purpose was to ex¬ 
pose such conduct as is referred to, which the 
proprietors proceeded to do; but in the spring 
of 1844 Smith raised a mob and destroyed the 
printing establishment. The proprietors fled to 
the county seat, and had warrants issued for the 
arrest of Smith, his brother Hyrum, and several 
others. The warrant for Smith’s arrest was 
served, but he refused to recognize the authority, 
and the arresting officer was driven from the city. 
The Mormons armed for resistance, and the 
militia were ordered out. The governor of the 
State finally induced Smith and his brother to 
surrender, and they were taken to jail. Although 
a guard was placed to protect them, the jail was 
surrounded at night, by people who were deter¬ 
mined to end the lawlessness of the Mormons, 
and both prisoners were killed by shooting into 


54 THE MORMON BIBLE, OR 

the jail. Brigham Young became Smith’s suc¬ 
cessor. In 1845 legislature repealed the act 
chartering the city of Nauvoo; and in 1847 
Young, and a considerable number of the peo¬ 
ple, removed to Salt Lake; but the main body re¬ 
mained at Nauvoo, where trouble continued. Fin¬ 
ally the city was bombarded, and the inhabitants 
were driven away; and in 1848 most of them 
emigrated to Salt Lake. In 1849 a convention of 
the Mormon settlers in the vicinity of Salt Lake 
was called, a legislature chosen, and a constitu¬ 
tion was adopted, with the design of securing the 
admittance of that country as a state of the Union 
— the name chosen being “Deseret.”* But Con¬ 
gress refused to admit the proposed state, and, 
instead, organized the country into a territory, to 
which was given the name Utah. The President 
(Fillmore) appointed Brigham Young, the head 
of the church, to the office of governor of the 
territory, and he also appointed other necessary 
officers; but the next year the judge so appointed 
was frightened out of the territory by threats of 
violence, and government authority was defied. 
Young was then removed from office, and a suc¬ 
cessor was appointed, who proceeded to the terri¬ 
tory accompanied by a battalion of troops; but 
after remaining at Salt Lake through winter he 
resigned, without having undertaken to exercise 
the functions of the office, and he and the troops 

* According to the Book of Ether, “deseret,” as 
interpreted by the people of Jared, was the name of 
the honey bee. Hence the name chosen for the pro¬ 
posed state, which, so applied, was explained to mean 
“the land of the honey bee.” 



THE BOOK OF MORMON 


55 


retired to California. After they left, Young de¬ 
clared that no power other than the Almighty 
could prevent him from governing the country. 
Other territorial officers appointed by the Presi¬ 
dent arrived after the troops had gone, but they 
were defied and terrified; and in 1856 an armed 
mob of Mormons entered the U. S. court room 
and compelled the judge to adjourn the court sine 
die ; and then all the officers, except the Indian 
agent, were obliged to leave the territory. Then 
President Buchanan appointed another governor, 
and sent an army of between two and three thou¬ 
sand men to sustain him, and to protect the other 
officers in the discharge of their duties. When 
Young learned that the troops were coming, he 
issued a proclamation forbidding them to enter 
the country, and ordering his people to arm and 
stop them. The Mormons captured and de¬ 
stroyed many of the army wagons laden with 
stores, and stole and drove away about a thou¬ 
sand cattle that were being driven in the rear of 
the army. Before the troops reached Salt Lake 
Valley winter came on, and their progress was so 
impeded by cold and snow that they were obliged 
to go into winter quarters. In 1858 commis¬ 
sioners sent out by the President secured a cessa¬ 
tion of hostilities, and offered a pardon to all who 
would submit to government authority, which 
offer was accepted; but the army remained till 
i860, when it was withdrawn. 

































































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